1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an extendible or deployable structure which is used by being extended or deployed in outer space, such as, for example, an antenna of an artificial satellite.
2. Description of Related Art
As a conventional extendible or deployable structure, there has been known a structure called an STEM (Storable Tubular Extendible Member) as described in a first patent document, for example.
This extendible structure is constructed to include an elongated extendible member having elasticity, and a storage part that serves to store the extendible member by winding it up, wherein a tip end of the extendible member can be extended from the storage part in a one-dimensional manner, so that an extendible part thus extended becomes a hollow tubular structure.
In this first patent document, by previously forming the transverse cross-sectional shape (i.e., the cross section in a direction orthogonal to an extending direction) of a sheet of elongate extendible member into a circular shape, winding it around the storage part while elastically deforming it into a flat shape, and pulling out the tip end portion thereof from the storage part, the cross-sectional shape of the extendible member is caused to elastically return to the circular shape, whereby the extendible part is made into the hollow tubular structure. Hereinafter, such a structure using a sheet of extendible member is referred to as a Uni-STEM structure.